Reported Reactions

Drugs › Erythropoiesis-stimulating agent

Brand name · Epoetin alfa-epbx

Retacrit: adverse event reports filed with FDA

1,429 reports list it as a suspect or interacting product, 2013–2026. Class: Erythropoiesis-stimulating agent. Also reported as Retacrit /00928305/.

1,429
reports as suspect product
0% of all reports · about 107 a year
106
reports, 12 months to June 2026
78 in the 12 months before
61%
marked serious by the reporter
78.3% across the class
24.7%
record death among outcomes, as reported
353 reports · not verified by FDA

Between March 2013 and June 2026, 1,429 adverse event reports received by FDA list the brand name Retacrit (epoetin alfa-epbx) as a suspect or interacting product. Reports that mention it only as a concomitant medication (739) are left out of every figure here.

In the 12 months to June 2026, 106 reports listed it, up 36% from 78 in the 12 months before. FDA releases FAERS data quarterly, so the newest months are incomplete and grow in later releases. Over its reporting history that is about 107 reports a year and 0% of the 20,646,523 reports in the database, and 2.2% of the reports for the erythropoiesis-stimulating agent class. How many people take it is not in the data, so a count is not a rate of occurrence.

The reactions recorded most often are death (24.4%), off label use (18.5%) and haemoglobin decreased (7.8%). A report can list several reactions, so shares add to more than 100%; 199 different terms appear across these reports. Death is recorded in 24.4% of these reports, a larger share than in the median erythropoiesis-stimulating agent drug (8.5%).

61% of the reports are marked serious by the reporter (78.3% across the class); 24.7% record death among the outcomes and 19.9% record hospitalisation, as reported. 35.8% of the reports came from consumers, and the largest patient age group is 75 and over (38.7%). FDA states that "a causal relationship cannot be established between product and reactions listed in a report" and that for any given report "there is no certainty that a suspected drug caused the event."

Reports by month, five years

02856Jul 2021: 18Aug 2021: 16Sep 2021: 22Oct 2021: 9Nov 2021: 27Dec 2021: 132022Jan 2022: 18Feb 2022: 16Mar 2022: 17Apr 2022: 23May 2022: 56Jun 2022: 17Jul 2022: 20Aug 2022: 24Sep 2022: 23Oct 2022: 25Nov 2022: 22Dec 2022: 212023Jan 2023: 26Feb 2023: 16Mar 2023: 34Apr 2023: 32May 2023: 26Jun 2023: 26Jul 2023: 28Aug 2023: 32Sep 2023: 23Oct 2023: 23Nov 2023: 21Dec 2023: 152024Jan 2024: 10Feb 2024: 18Mar 2024: 13Apr 2024: 11May 2024: 11Jun 2024: 7Jul 2024: 9Aug 2024: 11Sep 2024: 10Oct 2024: 6Nov 2024: 5Dec 2024: 82025Jan 2025: 6Feb 2025: 3Mar 2025: 3Apr 2025: 8May 2025: 3Jun 2025: 6Jul 2025: 11Aug 2025: 9Sep 2025: 5Oct 2025: 17Nov 2025: 8Dec 2025: 62026Jan 2026: 4Feb 2026: 3Mar 2026: 15Apr 2026: 11May 2026: 9Jun 2026: 8

Reports by the month FDA received them. FDA releases FAERS data quarterly, so the newest months are incomplete and grow in later releases.

By year received

01513022013: 120132018: 220182019: 10620192020: 25720202021: 22520212022: 28220222023: 30220232024: 11920242025: 8520252026: 502026

2026 covers reports received through June 2026 only.

Reactions recorded in the reports

share of Retacrit reports recording the termmedian drug in erythropoiesis-stimulating agent

  1. Deaththe patient died; cause not stated by this term24.4%348
  2. Off label useused for a purpose or in a way not on the label18.5%264
  3. Haemoglobin decreasedlow haemoglobin7.8%111
  4. Hospitalisationadmission to hospital3.5%50
  5. Anaemialow red blood cells2.9%42
  6. Astheniaweakness or lack of energy2.9%42
  7. Drug ineffectivethe medicine did not work as expected2.9%42
  8. Product dose omission issuea dose was missed2.7%39
  9. Malaisegeneral feeling of being unwell2.3%33
  10. Fatiguetiredness2.2%32
  11. Hypoacusisreduced hearing2.1%30
  12. Dyspnoeashortness of breath1.6%23
  13. Illness1.6%23
  14. Covid-19COVID-19 infection1.5%21
  15. Dialysisdialysis1.3%19
  16. Renal failurekidney failure1.3%18
  17. Aplasia pure red cell1.1%16
  18. Pneumonialung infection1.1%16
  19. Chronic kidney diseaselong-term kidney disease1%15
  20. Device issuea problem with the device1%15
  21. Weight decreasedweight loss1%15
  22. Product use in unapproved indicationused for a purpose not on the label0.9%13
  23. Product use issuea problem in how the product was used0.9%13

Top 30 of 199 MedDRA preferred terms recorded across these reports, with a plain-language gloss where one is available. One report can record several terms. The hollow bar is the median share across the 9 drugs in the erythropoiesis-stimulating agent class; it describes the reports, not the patients. FDA states that adverse event reports "represent a small percentage of total usage numbers of a product", that "common products may have a higher number of adverse events due to the higher total number of people using the product", and that the data "by themselves are not an indicator of the safety profile of the drug or biologic."

Outcomes recorded

Death24.7%353
Life-threatening1.9%27
Hospitalisation (initial or prolonged)19.9%285
Disability0.7%10
Congenital anomaly0%0
Other serious22.3%319
Not serious39%557

Outcome flags as the reporter set them; a report can carry several, and "other serious" is FDA's own category for serious reports outside the named outcomes. Grey bar: all 66,386 reports in the class. FDA has not verified any outcome and states that the reports "cannot be used to estimate the incidence of these events."

Patients and reporters

Patient age

Under 20.3%4
2 to 110.3%5
12 to 170.4%6
18 to 442.6%37
45 to 6414%200
65 to 7419%272
75 and over38.7%553
Age not given24.6%352

Patient sex

Female46.9%670
Male43.2%618
Not given9.9%141

Who reported

Physician21.6%309
Pharmacist9.8%140
Other health professional22.3%319
Lawyer0%0
Consumer or non-health professional35.8%511
Not given10.5%150

Age and sex as stated in the report; the reporter's qualification is the primary source recorded by FDA. 88% of reports give the United States as the country of the event or reporter.

Reason for use recorded

Indication as recorded (MedDRA)ReportsShare
Anaemia23616.5%
Nephrogenic anaemia1399.7%
Chronic kidney disease886.2%
Myelodysplastic syndrome503.5%
Haemoglobin decreased151%
Anaemia of chronic disease141%

The indication field is filled in by the reporter and is often blank; shares are of all 1,429 reports.

Drugs most often listed in the same reports

Drug (any role in the report)ReportsShare of Retacrit reports
Valacyclovir hydrochloride493.4%
Bactrim433%
Aspirin362.5%
Rituximab302.1%
Filgrastim282%
Atorvastatin271.9%
Procrit261.8%
Furosemide251.7%
Allopurinol211.5%
Carvedilol201.4%

Other products listed in reports where Retacrit is a suspect product, whatever their own role. Co-listing means the two were recorded together; it says nothing about either product's part in the event. Only the 2,500 most-reported names are counted here.

In context

MeasureRetacritErythropoiesis-stimulating agentAll reports
Reports as suspect product1,42966,38620,646,523
Share of that pool—2.2%0%
Reports, latest 12 months106—1,332,454
Marked serious61%78.3%57.4%
Death recorded among outcomes, per 1,000 reports24734091
Hospitalisation recorded, per 1,000 reports199342213
Consumer-filed share35.8%22.3%45.8%
Top term, share of reportsDeath 24.4%median 8.5%4.1%

Shares are of reports, not of patients treated. The number of people taking a product is not in the data, so none of these figures is a rate, and differences between columns reflect who takes a product, who reports and how long it has been sold. FDA states that adverse event reports "represent a small percentage of total usage numbers of a product", that "common products may have a higher number of adverse events due to the higher total number of people using the product", and that the data "by themselves are not an indicator of the safety profile of the drug or biologic."

Other drugs in the erythropoiesis-stimulating agent class

DrugName typeReportsLatest 12 monthsMarked serious
Aranespbrand37,27782688.2%
Mircerabrand8,86528165.8%
Procritbrand8,2246657%
Epogenbrand4,3172741.8%
Darbepoetin alfageneric3,77029993.6%
Epoetin alfageneric9454391.5%
Methoxy polyethylene glycol-epoetin betageneric911199.7%
Erythropoietingeneric6486497.2%

Ordered by report count for navigation only. FDA states that adverse event reports "represent a small percentage of total usage numbers of a product", that "common products may have a higher number of adverse events due to the higher total number of people using the product", and that the data "by themselves are not an indicator of the safety profile of the drug or biologic." A brand and its generic are separate rows because reporters name them separately.

Questions about Retacrit reports

How many adverse event reports has FDA received for Retacrit?

1,429 reports list Retacrit as a suspect or interacting product in the openFDA FAERS release of 28 Sep 2026, covering reports received through June 2026. 106 of them arrived in the latest 12 months. Another 739 list it only as a concomitant medication.

What reactions are recorded in Retacrit reports?

death (24.4%), off label use (18.5%), haemoglobin decreased (7.8%), hospitalisation (3.5%) and anaemia (2.9%). These are MedDRA preferred terms coded from what the reporter described; a report can list several, and a term's presence is not a finding that Retacrit was responsible.

How serious are the reports?

61% are marked serious by the reporter. Among the outcomes recorded, 24.7% of reports include death and 19.9% include hospitalisation. FDA has not verified these outcomes and states that the reports "cannot be used to estimate the incidence" of the events.

Who files these reports?

consumer or non-health professional (35.8%), other health professional (22.3%) and physician (21.6%). Most reports reach FDA through the manufacturer, which must forward reports it receives.

Are reports for Retacrit rising?

106 reports in the 12 months to June 2026, up 36% from 78 in the 12 months before. FDA releases FAERS data quarterly, so the newest months are incomplete and grow in later releases. Counts also move with how many people take a product, its time on the market and publicity.

Do these reports show that Retacrit was responsible for these reactions?

No. FDA states that "a causal relationship cannot be established between product and reactions listed in a report" and that for any given report "there is no certainty that a suspected drug caused the event." The reaction may relate to the condition being treated, to other medicines, or to something else.

Is this a list of the side effects of Retacrit?

No. It is a count of what was reported to FDA. The adverse reactions observed in clinical studies are printed on the FDA-approved label, which a pharmacist or clinician can go through with you.

How do I report an adverse event?

Consumers and health professionals can report to FDA through MedWatch (Form FDA 3500 online, or 1-800-FDA-1088), or to the manufacturer, which must pass reports on. See the guide on how to report.

Where this comes from. Counts are built from the openFDA Drug Adverse Event (FAERS) bulk export released 28 Sep 2026, which holds reports FDA received through 30 Jun 2026. Drug names are as reported, resolved to the brand or generic name on the FDA label where openFDA's harmonisation matched them; classes are the pharmacologic class (EPC) from the label and the National Drug Code Directory of 17 Sep 2026. A report counts here when it lists Retacrit as a suspect or interacting product; reports listing it only as a concomitant medication (739) are excluded. No report narrative, lot number, patient detail or reporter identity is published. See the methodology and sources; FDA's record is authoritative, and corrections are handled within five working days.

Drug data (FAERS) through 30 Jun 2026; device data (MAUDE) through 31 Aug 2026. Not medical advice.